Warrior
by LeagueChampionRed
Summary: In the medieval ages, Ash Ketchum is trained to one of the most elite warriors of Kanto. When Kanto is attacked, his father tells him something. His life becomes extremely complicated. Can Ash put the pieces together and lead a normal life? AU and Pokeshipping.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:**

**Many thanks to Reppad98 for correcting this chapter!**

**Hope y'all had a nice Christmas and a good 2012. This chapter is a bit boring but don't judge a book by its cover! There are some Christmas hints in here, keep your eyes open. I'm not sure if this came chapter came out well. **

**Let me explain some stuff.**

**This is in medieval times(AU), so people will ride on Rapidash, Arcanine, you name it. Wars will be fought with swords, shields and bows.  
Humans and Pokémon die (can't say I didn't warn you!)  
Last, there will be several time jumps in this story.**

* * *

''No! I refuse to let my son be weak! Kanto needs good fighters! Ash has being a warrior inside him!''

''But Stanley, he is only nine years old! Kids aren't supposed to fight! HE IS YOUR SON, FOR MEW'S SAKE!''

''You just don't understand, Delia! Do you know what they'll do if they get hold of him?! They will kill him!''

Ash, a raven haired boy with brown eyes, was sitting outside, hearing his parents argue.

His dad wanted to take him somewhere else to train him in combat. Like every mother would do, his mother, Delia, refused.

Kanto was at war with Hoenn for about three years now. Kanto had been the home of the battlefield many times before, but Kanto has always held their ground. They weren't exactly friends with Johto, either.

All the wars had cost Ash's father, Stanley Ketchum some of his fingers. He had been in the Kantonian Army since he was a teenager. Only a few months ago, he had reluctantly retired from service. The only reason Kanto let him retire was because he had fought for twenty years.

Ash didn't want to go to war, but he had to. Every man who was able bodied had to fight against Hoenn.

There was no stopping Ash's father; the Ketchum family had a reputation of having the best fighters of Kanto and Stanley Ketchum was determined to live up to that reputation.

Suddenly, Stanley Ketchum stormed out of their house, shaking Ash out of his thoughts. He had a backpack with him when he ran towards the stable. Moments later, Ash's father came out of the stables, riding his Rapidash. When the horse galloped past Ash, he lifted him up from the ground and onto his saddle.

''Where are we going?'' the nine year old cried.

''Training camp, boy, HIYA! Speed up, Dancer!'' the retired soldier called, towards both Ash and his Rapidash.

Several voices rang out from behind them.

''STANLEY! COME BACK HERE RIGHT NOW! YOU AREN'T GOING TO TAKE ASH!'' Delia screamed, tears in her eyes.

''Aaaaash!'' a different voice cried. Ash looked behind him and saw that his best friend, Gary, was running behind the Horse Pokémon.

''Gary! Dad, stop! Where are we going? MOM! No! Dad, stop! Stop it!'' Ash yelled, desperately trying to stop the Rapidash.

"Ash-don't-go…" Gary panted, trying to catch up with Dancer, and as he collapsed, he yelled with his last strenght, "ASH!"'

''No… dad…. turn back….'' Ash softly cried, tears rolling down his cheeks, but his father ignored him.

* * *

''Dad… I want to go home, I want to go to bed,'' Ash said when they stopped at a rocky, smelly place right in the middle of nowhere.

''Ash, this is where you shall be trained. This is where I have been trained. It is time for you to become a warrior,'' Stanley explained, ignoring his son. ''You won't be going back to Pallet Town to see mom or Gary for the next years. You will not call me dad anymore. You shall call me Centurion. You will listen to anything I say and obey without question! Is that clear?''

Centurion was a rank in the army. A Centurion leads a platoon of soldiers and every fully trained Ketchum Warrior is immediately promoted to a Centurion upon entering the army of Kanto.

''But daaaaaaaaad, I want to go back to Pallet Town!'' the raven haired boy whined.

''What did I just say? Centurion! We will not go back to Pallet Town for the next period of time!'' the veteran soldier shouted.

''But dad… I want to go to mommy!''

''OW!'' Ash cried out in pain. His father had picked up a stick and hit his son with it.

''Centurion! It's Centurion! Got it?'' Stanley asked, raising his stick, ready to strike for a second time.

''Y-yes da- I mean, Centurion,'' Ash stammered.

Ash's father then rummaged through the backpack and got several items out of it.

''This is your long sword. Smash it into a Gyarados' scales, it won't break, it will penetrate almost anything, it won't rust. This is the sword any warrior wishes for,'' Ash tried lifting it but it was too heavy. ''The black hilt had the silver outlining of a Salamence. On the blade was an inscription that said: _Fear no evil, for evil __rewards__ us.''_

''This is your bow, even a Scyther can't slash through this bow and the string.'' This time, Ash could easily pick the bow up. The silver outlining of a Salamence was also on this bow.

''This is your shield,'' The shield was round and it had a hole in the middle. It was black, but in the middle was a red K for Kanto. The contour was also red.

''Why is there a hole, over there?'' Ash asked, pointing at the hole.

''You have to kill a Pokémon that has a horn somewhere. Take the horn and put it in there, it is the test of courage for all Ketchum Warriors.''

A shiver went through Ash's spine at the thought of standing face-to-face with a giant, heavy, horned Pokémon.

''One more thing. Do as I do.'' Ash's father commanded and moved his fist towards his heart. Then, he said in a loud voice: _''Fear no evil, for evil rewards us.''_

Not understanding what it meant, Ash moved his fist to his heart and repeated his father: _''Fear no evil, for evil rewards us.''_

''Now, we start training!'' Stanley Ketchum declared with a dark grin on his face.

* * *

_3 years later…_

* * *

''See that Stantler? Take the shot when you have the chance! Remember: always check if some of its friends are nearby!'' Stanley Ketchum whispered.

Through the bushes the now twelve year old Ash sneaked, not making the slightest of sounds.

Things had changed; Kanto was no longer at war with Hoenn, they had even become allies. Nevertheless, Ash's training went on. The intense training made Ash taller and more muscled than a regular twelve year old would be.

He took out his bow and arrows. The Stantler heard something but didn't run away. Steady… steady now, just aim your bow at the Stantler…

Something went through Ash's head as he was about to let the arrow go.

This Stantler… it probably had its own family to take care of… it had done nothing wrong, it was innocent.

''What are you doing?!'' Sergeant Stanley Ketchum hissed when Ash lowered his bow. The Stantler heard Ash's father's hissing and quickly dashed away.

The veteran took out his own bow. With the speed of light, he took a arrow and let it go. Moments later, a thud was heard and the lifeless body of the Stantler was on the ground.

''No dinner for you, weakling!'' his father snapped, going out to retrieve the Stantler meat.

The next morning, Ash awoke with a growling, empty stomach. Even though he hated it, he had to go out and find something to eat.

He took out his long sword, bow, arrows and shield, then took off into the forest. A growling noise appeared from behind him as he was about to leave.

It was a massive Rhyhorn.

There was no running from this battle, he couldn't call his father for help because he was still asleep.

It was Ash's battle.

The Rhyhorn charged towards Ash, who quickly shot a arrow at it. It bounced off; Rhyhorn's armor was way too thick.

Quickly, Ash jumped on top of a boulder and then took a leap, landing on Rhyhorn's back. Madly, Rhyhorn trashed about, trying to get Ash off. With all his might, Ash held on.

Finally, Rhyhorn crashed into the tree, causing it to fall down. Dazed by the collision, Rhyhorn stood still. This was Ash's chance to take Rhyhorn out.

He thrust his long sword between Rhyhorn's scales, causing it to cry out in pain. Next, Ash Ketchum jumped off of Rhyhorn's back and shot two arrows in both his eyes. For the big final, the raven haired pre-teen drove his sword in Rhyhorn's mouth.

A low rumble was heard when Rhyhorn collapsed. Knowing exactly what to do, Ash moved towards the Rhyhorn and severed the horn. The victorious Ash took the horn and locked it into his shield.

He had done it; he accomplished the test of courage that many adult warriors wouldn't have.

* * *

Proudly, he went back to the place where they camped. He found his father, arms crossed, looking furious.

''Where the hell have you been?'' he grunted. He didn't look surprised when Ash showed the horn on his shield.

''Am I done training? I killed a Rhyhorn!'' Ash said, eagerly.

''You got lucky, boy! If that Rhyhorn shook you off, you wouldn't be standing in front of me now!'' Stanley spat.

''Huh? How did you know that?'' Ash questioned.

Face palming, the veteran replied: ''I saw the battle…''

''Wait, does that mean that you saw me kill that Pokémon?''

Stanley Ketchum let out a roar of frustration. Then, he bellowed: ''You don't say! Of course it does! Seriously, I'm getting real tired of you, Ash!''

After taking a few steps back, Ash realized what just has happened. ''I could have died! Do I mean anything to you, at all?'' Ash yelled back.

''For Mew's sake, get over it,'' Stanley said, rolling his eyes.

Ash let out a fierce battle cry, then grabbed the hilt of his long sword. The blade was shining in the sun as Ash jumped up high, sword held up. The blade was still stained with blood of its previous victim, Rhyhorn.

The battle skills of the veteran hadn't left him; he grabbed his wooden stick and thrust it in Ash's stomach. After Ash landed back on his feet, Stanley Ketchum used his stick to sweep the younger boy's feet off the ground. Not hesitating, he took the opportunity of Ash's vulnerability, he took his gladius from his belt and held it up Ash's throat.

''You are weak and pathetic! You are a shame to the Ketchum family! You won't even last five minutes in battle! If you lack the guts to kill a Pokémon, how can you survive a war?!'' Ash was breathing heavily as Stanley bellowed these words.

The gladius slightly cut Ash's throat and blood was dripping from his neck.

''Furthermore, if you ever dare to assault me ever again, **I will not hesitate to** **kill you** and if you _do_ assault me, you better have a damn Celebi to prevent yourself from being born.''

Ash's father then released his son and put his gladius back in his belt. The raven-haired boy was scared out of his wits after being threatened like that and he rubbed the small cut on his throat.

After the incident, Ash respected his father's authority more. The training became more intense, if that was possible. The next day, Ash had to swim up and down the lake twenty times. When he was done, he had to run twenty laps around the lake. Ash had to repeat the routine for hours.

''A good warm up for today's training!'' his father had always said. There was a different warm up; running up and down the mountain for hours. If Ash stopped, Dancer would give Ash a taste of her Megahorn attack.

Training went on like that for years, but the day had come where Ash's training was complete.

''Son, you're now a official Ketchum Warrior!'' his father said, proudly. Ash was beaming, both of the fact that he had become a Ketchum Warrior and that the horrible training was over.

''Are we going back to Pallet Town?'' the now fifteen year old teenager asked.

His father didn't respond, but he whistled. Two Rapidash came from out of nowhere.

''This is your Rapidash. His name is Dasher. You can't ride it yet, it only trusts me. My Rapidash trusts you, so we'll switch.''

After saddling onto their Pokémon, they travelled back to Pallet Town, through the same road six painful years ago.

Ash yelled towards his father: ''Look! There is Viridian City!''

Ash had sure missed the civilized world; he greeted everyone he saw on the way. Once or twice, he had seen people at the spot where they had trained. It would take a while to get used to being around so many people.

Over the years, Ash had realized that being a soldier was mandatory. One day, he had to go to war and if he didn't train, he wouldn't survive. Ash was more disciplined and had more respect for his father, despite that respect being earned out of fear and a hard life.

''Can… can it be?'' the raven haired teenager muttered. In the distance, a village appeared. Ash had not forgotten it, nor had he forgotten his best friend, Gary, his mom and all the other people.

Ash's father was grinning as they approached the village.

''Come on, Dancer! I'm sure you want to see all the other Rapidash!'' Ash encouraged his Rapidash, and sure enough, Dancer started picking up speed.

His own Rapidash, Dasher, also sped up when Stanley encouraged him.

''Race you to the stables!'' Ash challenged Stanley. Soon, both Rapidash had reached their maximum speed. Ash could feel the wind cutting in his face, but he didn't care.

Father, son and their Rapidash entered Pallet Town. After Ash and Dancer reached the stables, Ash and his father walked into the streets of Pallet Town. People looked at them in surprise. They couldn't recognize Ash; he was tall, strong, agile. Some of his hair was visible from under his black hood. He wore a undershirt with long, grey, sleeves. Over the grey undershirt, he wore a sleeveless red shirt. The red shirt was made out of hard leather on the outside, but soft silk on the inside. His trousers were black, his boots brown. Last, he wore red lined, black gloves. The fingertips of his gloves were also red.

Standing there, Ash looked around to spot people he knew. After a minute or so, he saw a guy that was around his age with brown, spiky hair.

''Gary! Gary!'' Ash yelled as he sprinted towards his best friend, not caring about the people frowning at him. From behind, Ash jumped on Gary. Gary collapsed, threw Ash off of him and looked in Ash's face.

''Ouch! What are you jumping on me for? My name isn't even Gary, you lunatic!''

Embarrassed, Ash stood up and responded: ''Sorry, I thought you were someone I knew.''

''Hahaha! I knew it was you, Ashy-boy! Still stupid, as always! Haha!'' Gary broke into laughter. Ash grew red of shame, cursing his denseness. After laughing, they hugged each other; after all, they hadn't seen each other since they were nine years old.

After a while of chatting Gary asked: ''Hey, Ash! You're not the only who has been training! My grandfather also trained me! Let's see who's the better fighter, bring your father and I'll bring my grandfather!''

Knowing that he was going to win, Ash accepted the challenge.

* * *

''The Oak family will prevail this time, Ketchum!'' Samuel Oak growled at Stanley Ketchum, his fist held high.

''Yeah, sure, just like last time, Oak?'' he grinned.

Gary and Ash stood face to face. The honor of their families were on the lineBoth had different weapons; Gary had a wooden sword, Ash his father's wooden stick.

''Let the battle begin!''

Immediately, Gary sprinted towards Ash. The raven-haired teenager parried the blow. Their weapons were locked together. On purpose, Ash leaned forward. Gary took a step back, causing Ash to fall to the ground. Feeling victorious, Gary held his sword up, ready to strike his opponent. The sword crashed down, but Ash had rolled over and swept Gary's feet from the ground with his wooden stick. After falling down, Gary tried to get up but Ash put his foot on his stomach.

''Twelve seconds!'' a bystander chuckled. ''THIS IS NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!'' Samuel Oak completely exploded. ''Better luck next time, Oak,'' Stanley said. With that, the old Oak stormed off towards his house, saying things like: ''Damn you, Ketchum,'' and ''We'll get you next time, Ketchum.''

After helping Gary up, Ash headed towards his home, ready to feel sweet embrace of his mother…

He knocked on the door of his own house. From the other side of the door, he heard his mother say: ''Mimey, see who is at the door for me, dear.''

His mother's Mr. Mime opened the door and looked in Ash's brown eyes. For a moment, Mr. Mime stood frozen, then he ran towards Ash's mother, letting out cries.

''What is the matter, Mimey? Calm yourself, for Mew's sake!''

Then, she saw Ash standing in the door opening. Like Mimey, she too, froze as if a Articuno had just used a Blizzard attack on her. After all those years, she finally saw Ash, her son, _her Ash._

She ran towards Ash, gave him a big hug and a million of kisses. Mimey had a expression on his face that stated: ''Oh, the irony…''

After a few minutes, filled with hugs, tears and kisses, Delia let go of her son.

She asked: ''Did your father have a good trip two weeks ago?''

''Huh? I thought you two hadn't seen each other for six years?'' the teenager questioned.

''When you are training, he sometimes comes by for a little visit!'' Delia explained.

Ash crossed his arms and grunted: ''Exactly the thing he would do…''

* * *

That night was the best he had in his life; he tasted proper, warm food for the first time in a long time. Mimey's and his mom's cooking skills were off the charts. After dinner, Stanley invited Ash and Gary to the local pub. Jolly music was playing in the pub. They met a brown haired guy their age, named Richard, but they preferred calling him Ritchie. They played cards till midnight, while the grown men played drinking games.

Much to their surprise, Stanley Ketchum and Samuel Oak sang, arm in arm, both a mug of beer in their hands: ''What shall we do with the drunken sailor, early in the morning! Way hay and up she...'' the rest wasn't heard because they had both collapsed. The three teenagers continued with singing and soon enough the entire pub had followed them.

Ash hadn't felt this good for a long time. Being with friends, not having to train, the jolly music, the cheerful atmosphere…

Things went on like that for over a year, doing fun stuff with Gary and Ritchie. They kept each other sharp by having practice fights daily. Ash began wondering if his training was even necessary. Kanto had a healthy relationship with all regions, except Johto. The tension was building up. The likeliness of war between the two regions kept growing. A war was almost inevitable.

Soon enough, during a practice fight between Ash, Gary and Ritchie, a soldier on a Rapidash rode into Pallet Town. ''War! War! Johto has declared war on Kanto! All men seventeen and older are to head to Viridian City Military Barracks!''

Realizing that they were all seventeen, Ash, Gary and Ritchie looked each other in the eyes. The time had come; his training was significant, after all.

* * *

The parting from Pallet Town was extremely difficult. His mother had broken into tears and gave them all big hugs.

''Give them a taste of Pallet Town, boys!'' Samuel Oak said.

Stanley laid his hands on Ash's shoulders, then he proudly said: ''Give 'em hell for me.''

Soldiers from Pallet Town and Viridian City had served in the Pallirian Division; this division consisted of men from Pallet Town and Viridian City. All of the Ketchum Warriors had served in the Pallirian Division.

After all the goodbyes, the three seventeen year olds headed towards Viridian City Barracks. Gary on his Arcanine, Ash on his Rapidash, Richie on his Charizard. Ash didn't know what was ahead of them, but he was ready.

Ready, to meet his fate.

* * *

**A/N**

**I hope you liked it! That last line was really cheesy, I know. I came up with that quote myself (fear no evil, for evil rewards us). It sort of has a message with it, think simple and you will figure it out!  
The Christmas reference was the name of the Rapidash's, Dasher and Dancer are some of the names of Santa's reindeer.**

**Please review and have a nice day!**


	2. Chapter 2

A/N

Hello everyone, welcome to the second chapter of this story. Sorry for the long wait, it was half because I was too lazy to write it and half because I was too lazy to correct the mistakes that reppad98 pointed out!

Anyways, I want to thank reppad98 so much for again pointing out mistakes and places that needed improvement.

(scene 1)

''Archers in position, we are good to go, Ash,'' Ritchie whispered after Gary signaled a message to him.

''Good.''

Around forty soldiers, clad in red and black, were hiding in a forest overlooking twenty soldiers clothed in green, who were about to cross a small creek.

It was about a year ago that Johto declared war. No side had made a move yet. Things were tense and once in a while, a tiny patrol of Johto dared to cross Route 27, like now. Ash had a platoon under his command, with his friends, Ritchie and Gary, in it. They were part of the Pallirian Division of Kanto. It was the hot season; Ash no longer wore his grey, long-sleeved undershirt, revealing his bare arms.

Rays of sunlight shined in the raven-haired soldier's eyes. He shielded his eyes with his hand while waiting for the perfect moment. The timing was perfect; just when they were crossing the creek, the moment when they were off guard is when Ash gave the signal to Gary's archers to fire.

The soldiers of Johto yelled in terror when they heard the whistle of arrows coming out of the thick forest. Within five seconds, half of the patrol had been cut down by the well-aimed arrows of Gary's archers.

After the arrows struck the patrol, who were stuck in the water, the Kantonian soldiers appeared from behind the bushes. Ash unsheathed his sword and held it up high. The blade was shining in the sunlight.

Ash and his platoon clashed with the enemy. From the corner of his eye, Ash saw Gary shoot a final arrow at an enemy soldier, which pierced his almost useless armor.

The young soldier blocked the blow of an axe, then he launched himself upon a Johtonian soldier. Defenseless, the soldier tried to stop Ash's sword, but his attempt was in vain. His face grew paler as the sword drove deeper and deeper in his stomach.

After getting back up, Ash located the leader of the patrol. Their eyes met for a second, then the leader thrust his blade towards Ash's stomach. The Centurion simply stepped out of the way and stabbed his long sword in the leader's side. He collapsed as he laid his hand on his side. Streams of blood covered his hand.

While leaning on his sword, the leader got back up. He reached for his hatchet on his back, and then threw it at his opponent. Ash protected himself from the hatchet with his shield. The raven haired soldier dashed towards the leader, who was barely standing, and stabbed his long sword into his stomach. The blade reached all the way through his body, the tip sticking slightly out in his back.

With a swift slash across his throat, the leader's life was ended. The small creek was the place of death for many soldiers that day. The water was red of blood.

''Loot the bodies, then let's get out of here before who knows what will happen,'' Ash ordered.

Looking through the pack of the patrol's leader he had killed, Ash noticed a drawing. He took a closer look at it. It was a drawing of a good looking woman.

'_This man probably has someone waiting for him in Johto,' _He thought to himself, examining the drawing.

From the corner of his eye, Ash saw Gary approaching him. Quickly, he threw the drawing in the water.

''No survivors. Braddock did get a big cut in his arm, but it's nothing too serious,'' Gary reported.

Ash noticed a wounded soldier crawling into the forest, leaving a trail of blood behind him.

''No survivors, aye?'' Ash grinned, and walked towards the wounded soldier, who had also noticed Ash coming closer and desperately tried to crawl as fast as he could.

''Don't even think about,'' Ash said as he blocked the path before the wounded soldier.

The wounded man sat upright on his knees and stammered: ''No… please, don't kill me!''

Ash violently kicked him in the shoulder and moved his hand to the hilt of his sword.

Suddenly, a hand grabbed his arm.

The young soldier looked and saw that the hand holding his arm was that of Gary.

''What… what in the name of the mighty Moltres do you think you're doing?!'' Ash stammered.

Gary pleaded: ''Don't kill him, he might have a family where he lives!''

''Don't kill him for what?!'' Ash barked and roughly pushed his friend on the ground.

With the speed of light, the grabbed his long-sword and slashed the wounded man's neck.

With a thud, his head landed on the ground.

Gary was shocked; he looked from the headless body of the defenseless man to his blood-stained friend.

''He… he was innocent…'' Gary stammered as Ash walked off.

Ash stopped and looked over his shoulder.

''Nobody's innocent in a war.''

_Several hours later…_

(scene 2)

''What is it, Ketchum?'' Ash's commanding officer, Lieutenant Surge, grumbled.

Ash had put his hood down when he entered Lt. Surge's tent. ''We encountered around twenty enemies. Killed them all, but they didn't have any important information on them.''

Lt. Surge's Raichu was eyeing Ash suspiciously.

''How many did we lose?''

''Braddock has a large cut on his arm. He's okay, but it will take time before he is ready to fight. Some have some minor injuries, but nothing critical.''

''Anything else?''

''No, sir.''

''Then get out of my tent, this instant,'' Lt. Surge snapped. Sparkles appeared on his Raichu's cheeks.

The soldiers guarding Lt. Surge's tent took their appropriate positions when Ash stormed out of the tent. He put his hood up. Ash had never liked Lt. Surge; he and his Raichu were constantly being extremely paranoid and suspicious around the men.

The base camp of the Pallirian Division was huge. It was made out of barracks for regular infantry. High ranking officers had their private tents. A wall with guard towers surrounded the base camp.

Ash visited the stables where Dasher was staying with the other horses.

''How you doin', Dasher? Here, have something to eat,'' Ash softly said and Dasher gave him an appreciative look while chewing the apple.

Ash patted Dasher on his head. They had finally become friends over the months. Ash silently recounted the events that happened the previous months. A full scale war was bound to happen soon… all the small skirmishes, the assassination of the Dragon's Den Elder, the massacre in Vermillion City. Johto blamed the death of the Dragon's Den Elder on Kanto, but Kanto denied being involved any way. Johto did the same after the slaughter in Vermillion City. Enough reason to start a war, but both sides just waited slyly.

Ash patted Dasher one final time, then he left the stables.

Ash headed back to the barracks where his platoon was sleeping. Patrolling guards were doing their routines with their Luxray by their side. Loud noises were coming out of the barracks.

'_Dear Mew, what is it now?' Ash thought annoyed._

''All right, what is all this racket about?!'' Ash roared when he entered the barracks.

It was an embarrassing sight; a green haired soldier with green eyes and a soldier with orange hair and black eyes were fighting each other. Their names were Drew and Morrison. Like Ash, Gary and Ritchie, they were also in their late teens. The rest of the men were cheering them on.

Enraged, Ash stepped between the two and menacingly said: ''This party is over.''

''Ah—it's that boring officer…'' Drew mumbled.

''Don't you d-dare interrupt our f-fight…'' Ash only understood half of what the clearly drunk Morrison said, but couldn't think any longer because Drew had tried to punch Ash in the face.

The men who were watching the fight started cheering even louder when the two men teamed up against Ash.

Both of the men, coming from opposite directions, attempted to throw themselves on Ash, but he stepped aside. Headfirst, the two men crashed into each other.

They collapsed, both unconscious.

''You both are a disgrace, how dare you call yourself a soldier of the Pallirian Division?'' Ash barked at the unconscious men.

Everyone fell silent and looked at the unconscious men with suppressed amazement. For a while, nobody even dared to move.

''You two!'' Ash finally roared, turning to two men that were nearest to him.

''Y-yes, sir!'' They flinched and quickly saluted.

''Carry these men to their beds!'' the Centurion ordered.

''Yes, sir!'' the two men saluted again, and then they lifted the men onto their shoulders.

After everyone had settled down, Richie and Gary asked Ash: ''Are you going to report this to Lt. Surge?''

Ash wasn't sure himself; Lt. Surge would send Drew and Morrison to the feared Torturer. The Torturer was a man who had Pokémon with the worst methods of torture… Soldiers who attack officers would get whipped for hours by The Torturer's Venusaur.

''I-I don't know yet. I guess I'll sleep first, then I will decide,'' Ash replied.

_2 days later…_

(scene 3)

''Please sir, we didn't mean anything with it, I swear!'' Morrison begged.

''Yeah, we didn't know what we were doing, sir!'' Drew appealed, while rubbing his head in pain from the collision.

''I would appreciate if both you would just shut up for a moment!'' Ash bellowed, his head in his hands.

''We will do anything, sir!''

''Please don't send us to—to-_him,_''

''Fine. But, if you two do anything like that again, I shall make sure that The Torturer brings you twice as much pain. Got it?'' Ash decided, while pointing his index finger at the men.

They both flinched and stammered: ''Y-yes, sir.''

''Good, now get out of my sight.''

After saluting, the two troublemakers went away.

Moments later, a messenger entered.

''What is it now?!'' Ash snapped, irritated.

''Er— sorry for disturbing, sir. I bring a message from Lt. Surge. You are to head to his tent immediately. He said it is extremely urgent.''

''Fine. Get out of my tent,'' Ash said and rushed to Lt. Surge's tent.

After a while, Ash arrived at the tent and stepped inside.

''What in the name of Hoenn took you so long, Ketchum?'' Lt. Surge complained.

There was a table with maps spread over it. Standing around the table were the other platoon leaders and a few company commanders.

''Right, now, we are all here because we got invaded by a large force of enemy Regulars yesterday,'' Lt. Surge explained.

Whispers broke out around the table. Some looked at each other in astonishment.

''And those bastards took Pallet Town.''

''What?! How is that possible? We patrolled the entire area, we killed every soldier there!'' Ash questioned, blown away.

''These weren't your regular enemies, Ketchum. This was done by the Guards of Ho-oh,'' Lt. Surge declared.

Guards of Ho-oh were elite soldiers of Johto. They were specialized in sneaky, stealth attacks.

''Beware of the Guards of Ho-oh. They are highly trained. We've also received reports of Dragon Guards in Pallet Town,'' Lt. Surge stated.

''Who are the Dragon Guards?'' an unfamiliar man asked.

Lt. Surge responded: ''They are the elite of the Guards of Ho-oh, and also the Lead Guardian of Ho-oh's personal guard. In other words, they are the elite of the elite. Samurai soldiers from Blackthorn City, completely clad in black. Should you encounter them, do not fight them! They are highly skilled in combat.''

''Why couldn't we reinforce the garrison in Pallet Town?'' a platoon leader asked, changing the subject.

''The Johtonians probably assassinated the guards on watch and then the invasion force circled around Pallet Town. As we speak, the remnants of the garrison are fighting for their lives, and other companies are trying to break through the forces surrounding PalletTown,'' Lt. Surge answered.

Lt. Surge was sweating out of exhaustion.

''Tonight, our company will launch a counterattack against Pallet Town. Our objective: retake Pallet Town.''

_Midnight…_

(scene 4)

Not a single soldier of Ash's platoon liked what they were doing now; it was completely dark and it was as if they were walking in a ghost town. Not a single soul or Pokémon was visible. A complete, scary silence hung over Pallet Town. The atmosphere was immensely gloomy and creepy. A cool breeze swept through the warm streets of Pallet Town.

''Fan out, keep five yards in between,'' Ash ordered and the forty men under his command spread over the stone street in four lines of ten.

No soul in sight yet there could be hundreds of Johtonian soldiers hiding in those houses.

Cautiously, Ash looked inside one of the houses. He moved his hand toward the hilt of his sword and unsheathed it. With his shield up, Ash moved further in. After a second or two, Ash noticed something weird.

'_There is something shiny there… could it be… an eye?' _

Ash raised his shield just in time to deflect the two arrows that were shot at him. 

At that second, a series of shouts and screams erupted from out of nowhere.

Armed with battle axes, two enemy soldiers charged at Ash. After blocking one attack with his shield and dodging the other one, Ash slammed his shield in the knee of one of the soldiers. The noisy crack of broken bones was muted by the screams of pain by the man who was hit.

''Argh! My leg!'' the man with the broken leg yelled.

The other soldier looked, wide-eyed, as Ash stabbed his partner in the back with his long sword. Ash kicked his sword out of the soldier's body and advanced towards the remaining one.

Frozen to the bone, Ash's opponent stood there, paralyzed, as Ash's blade neared his chest.

Ash stepped outside. If Hell could be defined in one picture, this one would be the best. The houses were ablaze, set on fire by the soldiers of Johto. Skarmory were flying low, cutting through soldiers like a knife through butter with their sharp wings. In the streets, soldiers of both sides were battling with each other. The whistling of arrows was constant and relentless. Ash noticed a Skarmory flying just yards away from him.

'_Maybe I could try…'_ Ash thought and jumped towards the Skarmory.

(scene 5)

'_Ouch… my head… what the hell happened?' _Ash thought, confused.

He felt a sharp pain in his head. Ash touched the spot where he had the most pain. His entire hand was covered in blood.

The raven haired soldier looked around the room he was in. He noticed a huge hole in the wall. Ash could see red-orange flames outside.

Looking next to him, Ash saw a motionless Skarmory. Putting the pieces together, Ash concluded that the Skarmory collided with the wall, causing the hole, and that he magically ended up here.

'_Where am I?' _

With much effort, Ash crawled to the hole in the wall and looked outside. There were twenty dead soldiers littering the street. Some of the buildings were on fire.

An image of Gary riding his Arcanine, the latter setting a house full of Johtonian soldiers on fire, flashed through his mind.

'_I remember Lt. Surge saying that we were moving out to Pallet Town… that's probably where I am right now,'_ Ash thought.

Staring at the motionless Skarmory behind him, another scene flashed back in his mind.

(flashback)

The Skarmory must have noticed, through all the pain and commotion, that he had a stowaway on his back.

Violently, the Skarmory tried to shake Ash off his back by swerving dangerously, rolling around and all sorts of maneuvers, but Ash was determined to hang on.

Desperately, Ash tried to convince the Skarmory to stop acting so dangerously.

''Stop it, you're going to get us killed!''

It was too late.

In one of the dangerous maneuvers, the Skarmory had lost control. The ground started to come closer. Ash braced himself for impact by grabbing onto the Skarmory with all of his might.

(end flashback)

'_So that's how I ended up here… I have to find my platoon, or anybody from our side on that matter.'_

Supported by a chair, Ash stood up and immediately felt the pain in his head increase.

'_This pain is unbearable, maybe I should've worn a helmet instead of just a hood…' _Ash thought to himself.

Trying to ignore the pain, Ash descended off the staircase. Just then, Ash heard many voices from outside the building.

'_Shit, I gotta hide, or else they'll find me!' He thought scared._

The worst case scenario happened.

Ash slipped off the stairs, and with a loud crash, he hit the furniture.

''What was that?''

The voices grew more exciting and Ash heard their footsteps come closer.

'_No… I'm in no condition to fight…' He thought desperately. _

A stream of fire appeared from out of nowhere. The men outside screamed in pain, and after a few seconds, the screams ceased.

For a while, it was silent. Ash stood up and looked outside, but quickly jumped away, because Dasher crashed into the wall.

''You almost killed me!'' Ash yelled in anger.

Dasher ignored Ash's complaints and motioned Ash to saddle onto him.

Silently, Ash stood up with help from a chair and saddled onto Dasher.

'_No… I'm getting dizzier, my head is hurting, I have to find help, and quick too,' Ash concluded._

Dasher moved out of the building and into the street. Several houses were completely burned down, while others were unscathed.

'_This street, it's familiar…' _Ash thought and moved Dasher forward.

Dasher seemed to have noticed it too, because he suddenly started galloping faster.

Looking around him, Ash suddenly realized why this street looked so familiar.

This is where Ash's house was.

'_I have to go and check if my parents are okay, maybe it's already too late…' _Ash grimly thought.

After what seemed like eternity, Ash reached the house.

The house was still standing, but there were several holes blasted in the walls.

Fear was steadily growing in Ash as he stumbled towards the house.

Looking back at Dasher, he said: ''If I don't come back in twenty minutes, you run for it, okay?''

Dasher looked at his owner for a few seconds. Then, he nodded.

Ash advanced towards the house, unsheathed his sword and opened the door.

All the chairs and tables were all lying on the ground. The statues were all disassembled and parts were scattered all over floor, but there was no sign of Stanley or Delia Ketchum.

With his heart beating fast, Ash carefully headed up the staircase.

Cautiously, Ash peeked around the corner and into the bedroom.

His sword clattered on the floor.

''No! Mom… dad!''


End file.
